


If it’s meant to be, why isn’t it written in the stars?

by Applesaday



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F, Soulmates AU, or at least a lengthy conversation about it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-08
Updated: 2019-10-08
Packaged: 2020-10-10 23:22:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20536328
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Applesaday/pseuds/Applesaday
Summary: Queen Regina was the land’s most revered leader at one time.But for all of her hard work, the other kings had grown jealous. They hated the fact that a singular person, much less a woman, had managed to accomplish such feats. They wanted to tear her success apart. So they came up with a devious plan.  They had contracted people to make up terrible rumours about her, calling her an evil queen.So an idea was formed to try and recreate her image: find Regina's soulmate. The one with the lion tattoo.





	1. The Rise and Fall

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Mark of the heart [ART]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/20242531) by [sunofthemoon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunofthemoon/pseuds/sunofthemoon). 

> So when I saw this art I immediately had to write it.
> 
> Soulmates AU always interested me, but I haven't gotten many chances to write it.
> 
> This is a shorter story [coming from me], but hopefully still as enjoyable.
> 
> As always, thank you to the wonderful mods for their incredible skills putting this together.
> 
> And a big shout-out to the artist whose work inspired this: sunofthemoon! I really hope I did this justice, and that you enjoy this!

Queen Regina was the land’s most revered leader at one time. She had inherited the kingdom from her father, King Henry, when he abdicated the throne. She made it grow and prosper like no one had imagined it would. It attracted people from all around to make the Verano Kingdom their home. 

But for all of her hard work, the other kings had grown jealous. They hated the fact that a singular person, much less a woman, had managed to accomplish such feats while their kindgoms lay stagnant as ever. They wanted to tear her success apart.

So they came up with a devious plan. They had contracted people to make up terrible rumours about her. 

Stories spread quickly, talking about the horrors this  _ evil _ queen did, ripping out the hearts of men that dared to speak a soft word to her, and crushing them to dust. Or the villages she razed with her fireballs. Not to mention the children she abducted in the middle of the night for nefarious purposes that no one dared to speak of or speculate.

For all that she tried, Queen Regina was powerless to stop her public image from turning into the feared Evil Queen.

Verano was no longer the bustling Kingdom she had crafted. It was a shadow of its former self. The people that stayed there were the ones that couldn’t afford to uproot their family. Newcomers were rare. At best, there’d be caravans moving through the villages, its occupants keeping their heads down and trying to pass by as quickly and subtly as possible.

Except for one. A fairy named Tinkerbell. She had the perfect idea of how to get the Queen’s image to improve. She just hoped that the idea would be well-received.

* * *

“A spouse? You want me to...get married?” Despite not living up to the Evil Queen persona in actuality, Tinkerbell wasn’t sure that she wouldn’t get a fireball to the head with the way this conversation was going.

“Well no. I mean, yes, a spouse. But not just anyone. Your soulmate!” Tinkerbell’s wings fluttered as she said the last word, and her feet left the floor for the briefest moment.

The Queen made a face. “I don’t have time to search for a soulmate.”

“That’s why we’ll be getting them to come to you!”

Regina, for her part, was trying to give the fairy the benefit of the doubt. The idea sounded ridiculous, but her conviction was enough to make her continue listening. “And how do you figure that?”

“I’ll use some fairy dust and find out what distinguishing trait your soulmate is supposed to have. Maybe the colour of the eye, or a special mark, it could be anything. And then, we get everyone with that trait to come here, and see if sparks fly!”

A voice cleared her throat and pointed out, “You do realize that more than a dozen people will try to take advantage of the situation, right?”

Tinkerbell turned to the Queen’s aging parents. Queen Cora had been a formidable monarch during her reign, and supported her daughter through her own rule. She wished she could hang the scoundrels that had besmirched her daughter’s good name by their balls and make them suffer.

But Regina was more of a keeper of peace rather than an instigator of wars. Besides, any and all attempts to clear her name led to more misunderstandings.

Tinkerbell winced and nodded. “Well yes, it does run the risk of running afoul, but let’s think positively. Maybe that’s just what the Queen needs!”

King Henry looked beyond puzzled. “I’m afraid I don’t follow,” he said, deep voice raspy with age.

“Well, let’s say a hundred people show up. That’s a hundred people that, even if they aren’t the Queen’s soulmate, they will now say that they personally visited the Queen and saw with their own two eyes that she is nothing like the stories. It’s like a backwards rumour creation!”

Queen Regina, for her part, could see the appeal. “Very well, let’s do this.”


	2. A Royal Contest

_ “Hear ye, hear ye! Queen Regina of the Verano Kingdom is searching for her soulmate. Anyone who bears the mark of a lion on their wrist is invited to a meeting with the Queen.” _

Word spread fast. Really, really fast.

Most just laughed it off. The Queen having a soulmate? It was preposterous.

But there were the few who had served in the White Kingdom’s army that had shown up, the lion symbol from their Kingdom’s crest proudly on their wrist. 

“Come in!” Tink gleefully exclaimed at the first motley group that wandered into the throne room. They were six men, all of them with one of their sleeves rolled up, showing the lion tattoo.

As Regina sat in her throne on the dais, she couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. None of the men approaching her and Tink were particularly attractive, nor did they strike any chord of ‘love at first sight’. She supposed that if any of them were truly her soulmate, then it wouldn’t really matter....true love would take care of that, right?

“Right! Now, make a line, one at a time,” Tink said, herding the men into a single-file line. “This is how it’s going to work. You will each step forward.”

She beckoned the first man to come up. “Now the Queen will also join us.”

Regina took great pains to not roll her eyes. How many times would she have to do this? She stood up and walked up to the first man, watching as he balked the slightest bit. Perhaps she shouldn’t have put on any dramatic makeup.

“Perfect! Now, clasp each other’s wrists.”

Regina and her potential suitor did as Tink asked, and then watched with bated breath as Tink poured some fairy dust from her pouch onto their intertwined arms. It glittered and then faded.

She could barely hide the sigh of relief as Tink said, “Looks like it’s not meant to be.”

And so it went for the rest of the day. 

As well as the rest of the week

Suitor after suitor came, and nothing happened. Scores of people bearing a lion on their wrist tried to test their luck. None got that magical result that Tink was hoping she’d have.

By the time the week was over, Regina had lost all hope. “This isn’t working.”

Tink didn’t even know what to say. She was mostly surprised that Regina had held on this long. “I mean, maybe your soulmate is making their way to you as we speak!”

Regina groaned. “Let’s be realistic. Everyone just came here so they can try to be the one that ‘tamed the Evil Queen’.”

“Well…” they had both heard whispered comments that were a bit too loud in the throne room, with its tendency to echo even the softest of words. “Fair enough. I’ll consult my books, maybe there’s a way to narrow it down even more!”

Cora tutted as Tink flitted away. Her parents had decided to join Regina for her latest round of soulmate searching, wanting to see how it worked. Neither of them were impressed. “I still stand by my thoughts Regina: if you are truly interested in finding a partner, your best chance is to go out into the world and find someone that you click with.”

Regina made a face. “This coming from you, who had an arranged marriage.”

Henry shook his head. “Not quite. I mean, yes, ours was arranged, but we had met before.”

Cora smiled wistfully. “Yes, once upon a dream.”

This was news to Regina. “And when were you two planning on telling me this?”

Both of her parents at least had the decency to look a bit remorseful at Regina’s question. Her father answered first. “Sharing was not something we were advised to do.”

Cora nodded. “At the time, the concept of true love wasn’t too well-seen. Some places it’s still like that today. It was all about allegiances and benefits to kingdoms. Both your father and I had despised the idea, and we separately decided to run away from our kingdoms, and somehow wound up finding each other in a nearby forest. Imagine our surprise when we eventually found our way back and they said ‘oh good, you’ve met’.”

“And the rest is history,” Henry said with a wry chuckle.

“Yes. The moral of the story: don’t keep waiting for your soulmate to appear, and don’t put all of your stock on this fairy’s magical dust. We both know that while magic is powerful, it’s not to be taken too literally. For all we know, your future spouse decides to get a tattoo after meeting you!”

Henry nodded. “Of course, it’s fantastic that you decided to pursue this, but you’ve been at this for an entire week. Do you really want to spend the rest of your days hoping for someone with that specific tattoo?”

Cora added, “Besides, you only began searching because of your image. Those idiotic kings and their coalition can have a fine talk with my fireballs if they decide to try that again. Find love because you want it, not because someone is forcing your hand or spewing false stories.”

Regina sighed and slumped on her throne. It seemed her mother had pity on her because she didn’t berate Regina for slouching. “So what would you suggest I do?”

Henry and Cora looked at each other. Henry answered first. “Go on a trip, visit a friend, anything to get out from this stuffy castle.”

Regina frowned. “Hey! Our castle is very nice.”

“Yes dear, but I believe your father would rather you travel for a bit. I hear the Midas Kingdom is beautiful this year, and with their annual celebration and ball, it’d be the perfect time to go.” Cora added.

Henry chortled as he said, “I believe this year’s theme is love, funnily enough!”

So it was decided. Regina would go to the Midas Kingdom, visit her friend Abigail, and hopefully get a better perspective on what to do, while also attending the aptly themed celebration. She decided to bring Tink along with her, just in case there was a potential suitor along the way.

As they both got into the carriage, Tink was babbling about soulmates.

“I think it’s fascinating that two people could be so perfect for each other that the universe just knows it.”

Regina was feeling a bit more skeptical about the entire situation since her conversation with her parents. “Right, but how would the universe know? I don’t even know what I would want in a partner, how would the universe do it?”

Tink pondered on that for a bit. “I think there might be greater forces at play maybe? Like fate, or destiny.”

“That’s a bit daunting. To think that no matter what I do, there is already a set course for me and my life.”

“I mean, I don’t think that your entire life is mapped out…”

“Just the important bits,” Regina countered.

“But it takes the guesswork out of it! Imagine if you had to go around and having a courtship with all of these people that you had met in the past week?”

Regina made a face of abject horror. “I’d probably turn celibate and submit myself to the nearest monastery.”

Tink tittered. “The point is, having a soulmate is a magical thing. And besides, we’re just trying to speed up the process, I’m sure that when you actually meet your soulmate, sparks will fly and it will be love at first sight!”

“I can just imagine it being an absolute disaster,” Regina murmured. “Also, how exactly do you see what my soulmate’s defining characteristic is? Do you take some magical mushrooms and check out for a few hours?”

“That’s not how it works at all. It’s a very complicated process. And, well...I didn’t actually see anything.”

“What?!” Regina was ready to light up a fireball inside the carriage. “So you mean to tell me that the whole lion tattoo was a lie?”

“No!” Tink sought to clarify. “I just mean that in the vision, everything was foggy.”

“Explain, now.” It was in moments like these that Tink wondered whether those rumours were so far-fetched.

And so Tink took a deep breath to explain. “It’s simple. We grab something near and dear to you, in this case, you gave me-”

“My necklace.” Regina said. It was the first thing her parents had gifted her, and she cherished it. In fact, she had it clasped around her neck at that very moment, and her hand instinctively went out to hold it. Funnily enough, the pendant was shaped like a heart.

“Right. So I sprinkled some fairy dust on that, then myself, and saw what happened. Now, these kind of visions are different for every fairy and every person we are searching soulmates for.”

While it was informative, Regina was also getting a bit impatient. “And what happened to my...vision?”

“Well, like I said, everything was cloudy. But I could hear you. You were really confused as you asked, ‘A lion tattoo? You’re sure?’ and then there was a muffled voice, and you asked, ‘but what made you get it on your wrist?’”

Regina had so many questions. “Why was the other person’s voice muffled?”

Tink shrugged. “As far as I know, I was just stepping into future you’s shoes, and therefore would only hear your side of the story.”

“Fair. Now, why would I be confused at a lion tattoo on someone’s wrist? It’s the most common thing in the realm.”

Tink could only shrug again. “I have no idea.”

“Okay, but if what you experienced is true, then that means I would never meet my soulmate in the throne room. I would have seen the tattoo on their wrist, and not have asked the question.”

“That’s not necessarily true. It could be a conversation you had with them later on.”

While Regina still had a lot of questions, she could see Tink had no other information to give her, so she just settled deeper into her seat, and ruminated on this information.

When night fell, they had to stop at the nearest little village, to let the horses rest, and so the driver could take a break. From what Regina could see, this village was in the middle of nowhere. Tink began opening the carriage door and beckoning for Regina to get out, when the latter shook her head and said, “You go ahead, I’ll be a minute.”

Regina wasn’t even sure under whose rule this village was, so with some magic, she changed her appearance a bit before she exited the carriage.

Tink did a double-take when she saw her. “Since when do you have short hair?”

Regina touched the ends of her hair, which barely brushed her shoulder, a stark contrast to the long hair that she had piled on top of her head earlier that trip. “For many years.”

“Does anyone else know about this?” Tink was entirely too surprised at Regina’s different look.

“Apart from my parents? No one else need know about it. And I don’t see what the big surprise is...there are women with shorter hair in the realm.”

Tink smiled and nodded. “Oh certainly! It’s just...very different, but it suits you.”

Riding pants and a simple loose tunic completed the look for Regina. Tink also used her magic to hide her wings and put on a green dress with some sparkles on it.

“I believe I said inconspicuous?” Regina said, looking at the dress with something akin to disdain.

“This is as inconspicuous as I can go!” Tink spluttered. “It’s not like fairies are made to be subtle. We glow!”

Regina let the matter be and just focused on getting themselves settled at the village’s only inn. She made sure their driver was doing okay the inn’s barn before she went with Tink to eat some dinner. “Well, Graham has settled in nicely. Now we can eat.”

They decided to sit by the bar, it allowed them to talk without being overheard. Or so they thought.

“My question is,” Regina was asking, “What happens if someone’s soulmate doesn’t show up in time?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, age differences for one, or even distances. They could be enemies, or even different species. Hell, they could be in two completely different realms.”

That made Tink ponder. “That could be true. But I trust to believe that if it’s meant to be, it’ll happen.”

“Or,” a new voice spoke up, “You could just find a Realm Jumper.”

It was the lady behind the counter. Regina thought she had introduced herself as Red when she took their order.

“Realm what?” Tink asked.

“Realm Jumpers. They are people that have the powers of realm traveling beans. They could take you to any realm you wanted to with just the snap of their fingers.”

Regina scoffed. “They’re a bunch of highway robbers and thieves.”

Red looked affronted. “They are good people. Yes, there might be some who abuse their powers, but there are plenty of people that they’ve helped. People searching for soulmates for one.”

While Tink just stayed silently stewing, Regina decided to ignore the pointed look. “You overheard that much?”

“Yep. And if you’re really interested in finding your soulmate, perhaps they can help you.”

“I refuse do put the fate of my love life in a group of miscreants that are the human version of a bean. It’s already enough I have entrusted a fairy for it.”

“You’re a fairy?” Red asked, shocked.

“The glittery dress wasn’t enough of a hint?” Regina deadpanned.

Red shrugged. “I don’t judge. I just listen.”

Regina decided to leave it at that and just deposit some coins, leaving the rest of her meal untouched. She had never really cared for her love life, and now it seemed that everyone from a fairy to a random bartender were giving her tips as if Regina was some romantically uninclined disaster.

Thankfully the next day, they arrived in the Midas kingdom, and Abigail greeted them with open arms.

Regina was once more wearing her magically long hair, and Tink was still silent. Deep down, Regina knew that Tink was hiding something.

She just had no idea what, or why.


	3. Realm Jumpers

Red was right about one thing, Realm Jumpers got a lot of bad rep from a rotten few.

Though it was to be expected. Give a random group of people teleportation powers, and more than a few people would use those powers to get them into the most secure locations before absconding with precious jewels and money.

But for many, it meant freedom. And that was especially true for Emma Swan. 

As someone who grew up as the poster child for true love, all Emma wanted was to do her own thing. She didn’t care for soulmates, or of love conquering everything, or whatever mantra her parents tried to instill in her with their nauseating optimism.

Being born with those powers was both a blessing and a curse. One hand, it allowed Emma to go anywhere she wanted with a snap of her fingers. On the other hand, it had led to an enormous rift between her and her parents.

Her powers had been a closely guarded secret between her parents and the council of fairies under their domain. Thankfully, her powers hadn’t manifested until she was a teenager - misplacing a baby in another realm would have been a nightmare. But by the time that Emma’s parents had figured out what was going on, with the help of the fairies, they wanted nothing more than to see if there was any way to hide her powers.

“Why?” Emma had innocently asked at the time.

Her parents hadn’t known how to answer. For Snow White and Prince Charming, to be associated with such a....distasteful group of people was, in their opinion, the worst thing their daughter could aspire to be.

“Because you’re meant to be so much more Emma. Those powers of yours, they’re dangerous. If you use them, very bad people will come after you.”

And Emma had believed them, because why wouldn’t she believe her parents?

Until she met Red one day by chance. She had gone for a ride a little too far away and ended up in a village in the middle of nowhere. Red had shown her that the Realm Jumpers weren’t the hooligans everyone thought they were.

“Being a Realm Jumper isn’t all fun and games. There are people who might depend on you to get them out of a bad situation, or even save their lives. You could make a real difference.”

For Emma, hearing that was akin to finding her true calling. She had always wanted to do more with her life, and to help others felt like the right thing to do. So she set out to learn how to be a Realm Jumper.

Red taught Emma how to use her powers, how to control where she was going, and eventually, how to take others with her. Their meetings and lessons were originally a secret, and it worked for Emma. She could pretend to be the perfect princess, and still learn about her powers.

But then the fairies found out. Blue, the head of the fairies, wasted no time in telling Snow and Charming about Emma’s rendezvous, and her parents pleaded with Emma to think about what she was doing, to reconsider.

“I’m trying to help people!” Emma had yelled.

Snow’s retort had been swift. “Not like this!”

“These people are criminals!” her father had added.

The argument had continued and escalated.

By the end of it, Emma had had enough. That next morning, she left without a word, and never looked back.

That had been ten years ago, and Emma wasn’t the least bit remorseful. She knew that her parents were still looking for her, but Emma made sure to spend long stretches of time in different realms to throw them off her scent.

Once a year, she returned to the Enchanted Forest for her birthday, because Red practically demanded it.

“It’s the least you can do after all. I did to take you under my wing and teach you all I know.”

Which was why Emma found herself sitting in Red’s inn one night when she saw the most beautiful woman she had ever met.

Her shorter brown hair was enough of a rarity, though her companion wasn’t much more subtle with her glittery dress. Clearly she was a fairy, Emma surmised. The pair looked like they wanted to blend in but hadn’t the foggiest idea of how it was done. If the glittery dress hadn’t been enough of a giveaway, the other woman’s clothes were way too fancy to be of a commoner. Perhaps she was a noble.

She saw as they sat by the bar and talked. Even when Red joined them, Emma continued working her way through her own dinner as she watched. And then suddenly, the short-haired woman paid for her meal and went to her room, leaving her meal unfinished.

Once Red joined her, Emma couldn’t hold back her curiosity. “Who were they?”

Red shrugged. “Not a clue. Travellers, I think they’re going to the Midas kingdom. ”

Emma frowned. “What makes you think that?”

“They were talking about true love and soulmates. This year Midas is holding their celebration and the theme is love.”

At that, Emma made a face. “Wonderful.”

Red scoffed. “Oh don’t try to act all tough and unfazed. I saw you looking her way the entire time.”

Emma could hardly deny that. “So what? Just because I might find that brunette attractive doesn’t mean much.”

“Oh the great Emma does have a heart!” Red exclaimed in mock surprise. “Shall I call in the heralds?”

“Buzz off,” Emma retorted, shoving her friend on the shoulder. At Red’s blank look at the phrase, she added, “It just means go away. Picked it up from my latest stay.”

“Do tell.”

* * *

Abigail listened with rapt attention as Regina updated her on her attempts at finding a soulmate. They were in the garden under a beautiful oak tree, sitting around a table, sipping from their tea cups and enjoying the warm autumn day.

“I mean, I can understand where Tink is coming from. My Frederick is the absolute sweetest, and many people have complimented us on how good we are together.” At Regina’s forlorn expression, she hastened to add, “Not that you need to find someone in order to achieve that! You’ve done great work by yourself and it shows. Those kings are just afraid of your power.”

Regina sighed. “I just wish I didn’t have to do this. I am perfectly happy leading by myself.”

“I actually disagree.”

“Oh?”

Abigail bit her lip. “I just mean...everyone needs love, and you’re no exception Regina. I know you wish to believe otherwise, but I think you’re truly curious by Tink’s idea of a soulmate, and you hope that you do find them.”

Regina sagged a bit. “Okay, I will admit that the idea intrigues me. But, after coming across so many people this past week, I don’t want it to be the defining thing between me and...whoever I choose.”

“But I thought soulmates were predetermined?” Abigail asked.

“They are, but I don’t want to have my love life be so strict. I want to genuinely fall in love with someone.”

Abigail nodded, excited. “Maybe you will meet the love of your life and sparks will fly! Ahhh...love at first sight.”

Regina couldn’t help but chuckle at Abigail’s swoon at the end. “Remind me again how I came to be friends with such a hopeless romantic?”

“That would be because you are a secret hopeless romantic yourself.”


	4. Lyons and Lions

Even though the actual celebrations were over two days away, Regina was enjoying seeing the decorations go up all over the kingdom. 

Maybe Abigail was right. Regina was excited to see what the deal was with her soulmate, and despite the lack of success thus far, maybe the universe was going to have her meet some other way.

But now, all that she was interested in was riding one of the Midas Kingdom’s horses and feeling the wind on her face, letting her short hair fly. She had dressed down for the occasion once more, and it suited her just fine. The less questions the better.

Everything was going fine, until someone with a long billowing navy blue cloak and a hood literally materialized in front of her horse. Regina tried to pull on the reins as hard as she could, but the horse’s stop wasn’t too smooth, and instead tumbled over his own hooves, getting Regina to vault over his head and crash land exactly on top of the person, knocking them both down to the ground.

As Regina struggled to get up, she was furious. “Don’t you look where you’re going!? I could have killed you you know?”

The only response she got was a groan and a wince. Regina looked over to the person and saw that the hood had fallen away to reveal a beautiful young woman with long flowing blonde locks.

“Are you okay?” Regina asked, changing tack. First she would make sure the woman was alright, then she would berate her.

“I mean, I did just nearly get mowed down by you and your brutish horse and instead got knocked down by your fine self, so yeah, peachy.” The woman hadn’t yet made eye contact with Regina, instead she was trying to access her injuries.

Regina understood about half of that, but she didn’t need to understand much to know who this person was. “Perhaps, if you hadn’t decided to teleport right in front of my ‘fine self’ you wouldn’t have had this happen to you, Realm Jumper.”

The woman groaned and rolled her eyes, before finally looking up. “Listen lady-”

Their eyes met and suddenly it was as if the other woman had forgotten about her injuries and everything. “You! I saw you at Red’s inn the other day!”

Regina did a double take. “Are you following me? Who set you up to this!?”

The woman put her hands up placatingly. “No! I promise, it’s just a coincidence. I was returning from delivering a couple of people. This place is usually deserted.”

“Just your luck then,” Regina muttered. “And mine too, apparently.”

“I’m Emma,” the woman said, holding her hand out.

Regina looked at the other woman apprehensively, saying nothing. Was she really supposed to trust this woman with her name?

“Come on, it’s just your name, not your entire life story, you can trust me.”

“Regina,” she said, clasping the hand, puzzled. Clearly this Realm Jumper had picked up some peculiar habits. But she seemed truly trustworthy, and for that, Regina was giving her the benefit of the doubt. Even if she was strange.

Emma shook their joined hands with a patient smile. She didn’t mock her for not knowing what to do. “That’s a hand shake.”

“I can tell,” Regina deadpanned, seeing their hands shaking in tandem.

“It’s a modern form of greeting.”

“Right.”

Emma began to chuckle but it turned into a painful yelp as she clutched her ribs. “I think I broke something.”

“Let me see. Raise your shirt.” Regina said. Although she tended to keep her magical powers hidden, particularly when she was trying to go around incognito, she could see that this woman, whether she was a good Realm Jumper or not, needed help.

Despite her confusion at the request, Emma did as asked. A toned chest greeted Regina, and she fought to keep her composure.

She cleared her throat and held her palms out to hover over Emma’s chest. “Can I use magic to heal you?”

Emma looked dumbfounded. “Considering I’d rather not have to spend weeks and months getting rehab for broken ribs, yes please.”

Regina began to concentrate her powers on healing the woman beside her, watching as her hands glowed purple and wisps of magic flowed into Emma’s chest.

“Fuck that feels better than any modern medicine,” Emma groaned, lying back down on her cloak.

“I imagine modern medicine doesn’t include magic, does it?” Regina asked.

“Nope. But damn they don’t have any bubonic plague, or tuberculosis.”

That made Regina curious. “They don’t?”

“Nope. And get this. They have indoor plumbing! No carrying buckets of water to the outhouse. Your toilet is inside the house! Mind blowing huh?”

Regina could only nod. “You do know I have no idea what a mind blow is, right?”

Emma reached forward to place her fingers templing around Regina’s forehead, and then made a ‘puff’ noise as she tensed her fingers wide open and moved away from Regina’s forehead. “Your mind has been blown by the explosion of amazing information I have provided to you.”

“Ah. This world seems like it’s full of curiosities.”

“It is! If you want, after you’re done healing me, we can go,” Emma offered.

Regina blinked. “Go? To another realm?”

“Yeah!”

“We can go just like that?” Regina was puzzled to say the least.

“Of course! As soon as you’re done we can go.”

Regina found it hard to believe, and her momentary trust was beginning to lapse. “And why should I trust you?”

At that, Emma faltered. “What reason would I have to lie to you?”

“I don’t know, Realm Jumpers-”

“We’re not criminals. Some of us just want to help.”

Regina still wasn’t convinced. So she finished her healing and cleared her throat, standing up. “There, all done.”

Emma stood up gingerly, as if expecting pain, and practically puffed her chest. “Wow, I haven’t felt this good in years!”

“Perhaps Realm Jumping isn’t that great for your health,” Regina retorted, walking back to her horse that had spent the last little while munching on some grass. Probably just grateful to be alive, Regina thought.

“Hey,” Emma said, taking a few quick steps towards Regina, going to stand in front of her. “Thank you.”

Regina nodded once. “You’re welcome.”

Emma held her hand out, and Regina could see that there was a peculiar contraption attached to her wrist, which she would later find out was called a watch. “Do you trust me?”

“What?”

“Do you trust me to take you to another realm and back in one piece?” Emma clarified.

“I barely know you.”

“And what better way to get to know me than by going Realm Jumping?”

To this day Regina wasn’t sure what made her say yes. Maybe she was curious about this other world and Realm Jumpers, maybe she thought back to the peculiar and wild ways people had met their soulmates. Whatever the reason, Regina nodded and placed her hand in Emma’s. “Yes.”

And with a beaming smile and using her free hand to snap her fingers, Emma whisked them away.

* * *

When Regina opened her eyes again, she was indoors. It was a house, but so many things looked foreign to her.

“This is my apartment,” Emma supplied.

Regina walked around with wonder and curiosity. “This is magnificent.”

Emma beamed. “See? Didn’t take you to your death. Shocking, I know.”

“Thank you,” Regina said with a genuine smile.

“Now come on! We have to go outside!” Emma said, her excitement radiating from her. She always loved showing new people around. “But first, we need to change. Especially you.”

Regina looked down at her riding clothes. “What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?”

Emma was quick to say, “Nothing! It’s just that.it doesn’t really fit with the whole 21st century city style.”

By now Regina had given up on trying to understand all of Emma’s lingo. So she just went along with Emma to her closet, and looked for something more modern. Emma changed too, but hers was a much shorter affair. She traded in her tunic and pants for something called jeans and a t-shirt, as well as a black leather jacket.

Regina’s choice was a very nice deep red dress, one that certainly made Emma gape for a good few seconds. It wasn’t very appropriate for a day walking around, but Emma got the idea that for Regina, sensible or pedestrian clothes weren’t really in her book.

“Alright, let’s go discover!”

Regina spent the rest of the day being taken around this place called Boston, trying out all kinds of foods and seeing the wildest things known to man, like vehicles that moved by themselves! The horses were somehow still powering something called an engine...Regina didn’t quite understand and was too afraid to ask.

“How did you ever get used to all of this? I would be completely lost,” Regina said after a few hours.

Emma shrugged. “I had someone to help me. And besides, it’s all super easy once you get the hang of it. It’s basically the same thing from our world, except that it’s modern. I mean just look here, you’ve got a bakery, a grocer, a cobbler, hell even a blacksmith.”

Regina looked in turn at each place, ending with a place that made keys. “It’s really something else.”

After walking a little more, they turned a corner and Regina saw a tattoo parlour. She saw on the window the various designs they had featured, and Emma ventured to ask, “Looking to get a modern tattoo made?”

Regina quickly denied it. “No, it’s just...I’ve been having this entire conversation around soulmates, and this just made me think of it.”

Emma really didn’t understand the connection, and voiced as much. “And what does that have to do with tattoos?”

“I had a fairy tell me what I should look for in a soulmate, and she told me that I should find my soulmate with a specific tattoo.” She didn’t want to give away too much information, she didn’t know how far word had spread about her search for the one with a lion tattoo.

“I see. Any luck thus far?” Emma asked, face not betraying anything.

Regina shook her head, walking away from the parlour. “Obviously not.”

Emma moved to keep pace with Regina. “Personally, I don’t think that the universe has such a reach to be able to predict who your perfect partner will be.”

“True, but wouldn’t it be nice to know that there is a perfect someone out there for you?” Regina asked thoughtfully. “Then you would know for sure that they are the one.”

Emma wasn’t so sure about it. “Look, the world isn’t as perfect as that, and you don’t strike me as the lovey-dovey type, so what gives? Why the obsession with soulmates?”

Regina sighed. She had managed to get by without having to explain that she was royalty, and was dreading having to find out what Emma thought of her then. She had grown fond of the Realm Jumper, and didn’t want to risk destroying that.

“Hello? Earth to Regina?” Emma waved her hand in front of Regina’s face. Somehow Regina had completely spaced out.

“Sorry, I was just thinking.” Regina stopped walking and looked around. The street wasn’t so busy, so she felt safe enough to ask, “Have you ever heard of the Verano Kingdom?”

Emma squinted. “Is that the one with the King that has a tendency to streak naked during the full moon?”

Regina burst out laughing. “No, that is the Eastnor Kingdom.”

“Right…hang on, I feel like I should know this.” Emma thought about for a second, and Regina had to admit that Emma looked adorable deep into thought. Then she perked up. “The one with the Evil Queen right?”

Regina cringed. “Well, somewhat…”

“Oh what’s her name. I know she has a regal sounding name-” Emma continued.

“Queen Regina,” Regina supplied.

“Right! That’s...oh.” Realization dawned on Emma. “That’s you?”

Regina nodded. “Minus the whole evil thing, yes.”

“Right! Now it all makes sense. Red had told me about the Queen looking for a soulmate.”

Regina frowned. “The bartender?”

“Yeah, she’s my oldest friend-”

“Hang on. She had mentioned Realm Jumpers when we were-” Regina’s face contorted in anger as she took a few steps back. “So you were following me!”

“No! I promise you it was a coincidence!” Emma countered. “I had no idea that I’d be seeing you again-”

“Again?” Regina latched on to the word.

Emma cringed. This was not going well for her. “I just mean that, like I said back in the forest, I saw you that night at Red’s inn, but I swear I had no idea about any of this.”

“A likely story,” Regina scoffed, crossing her arms. She was acutely aware that this world was supposedly magic-free, and therefore meant that Regina couldn’t whip out one of her intimidating fireballs.

“Why are you being so paranoid about this?” Emma asked with a huff.

“Because everyone knows that Realm Jumpers are a bunch of criminals looking to take advantage of you.”

Emma frowned. “Sure, sort of like an Evil Queen terrorizes her subject, right?”

Regina had no way of countering it. She had her there, but Regina wouldn’t dare admit that Emma had a point.

At least not in normal circumstances.

“Touche,” Regina admitted, bowing her head slightly, sighing deeply.

Emma took a deep breath. “Look Regina, I promise you, I have no ulterior motives. I was just dropping off a couple in another realm, and if I had been looking to get in with you, I would’ve picked a less dangerous way to cross paths with you.”

Regina smiled. “Yes, I imagine it must’ve been painful for you.”

“So painful,” Emma winced and pouted, rubbing her stomach.

And then Regina had an idea. A really far-fetched, and very-unlike-her idea “Would you like to come to the ball with me?”

Emma did a double-take. “The one in the Midas Kingdom?”

Regina nodded. “Yep, in two days.”

“It’s a date then!” Emma grinned.

Regina had never felt butterflies in her stomach, but she did when Emma agreed to be her partner for the ball. Of course, they hadn’t specified whether the date would be platonic or romantic, but Regina hoped for the latter.

Though she saw that Emma didn’t seem to have a tattoo of a lion, and she wondered about all the differing opinions on soulmates. Maybe the whole thing was a bunch of nonsense.

She briefly wondered whether Emma might get a tattoo later on in life, or whether that watch could possibly hide a lion behind it. It was too tiny, and Regina shook her head. She was overthinking it, and should focus on enjoying the rest of the day in this peculiar world.

And when Emma took her hand as they made their way back to her apartment, Regina’s butterflies practically swelled and took over her stomach. She was enamoured.


	5. A Ball

The day of the ball had already started hectic. Abigail had a misunderstanding with the royal decorator, so Regina had to step up and help. Tink also offered, and the two of them used their magic to make the place beautiful.

While she worked, she was sure she caught a glimpse of Emma and Red, but said nothing, just in case she had been mistaken.

What she was sure of, was that Tink was acting weird. She tried asking, but every time she just tittered and waved it off. “I’m just so excited for the ball tonight!”

Regina didn’t believe her for a moment, but she had Abigail breathing down her neck, so the investigation had to wait.

Soon enough, it was time for the ball, and as Regina waited patiently by the entrance, she felt her butterflies return again.

“I hope you haven’t been waiting long,” Emma said from behind her.

As Regina turned around to face her date, it was now her turn to be speechless. Seeing Emma with her hair curled nicely and a purple dress was such a stark difference from the woman who apparently enjoyed leather jackets, if her closet was any indication.

“Not at all. And you look beautiful,” Regina said with a smile.

If she didn’t know any better, Regina could swear that Emma was blushing, but she ducked her head before she could see it.

“As do you.”

Regina’s dresses were usually more dramatic, so she chose something a bit less dramatic, but still as revealing, a blue dress that she always loved to wear when she wanted to attract attention.

Though this time, there was one specific person she wanted to attract.

“Shall we dance?” Regina asked, offering her left hand.

Emma placed her right hand on Regina’s, and they entered the ball together. They both only had eyes for the other, but word spread fast at the two lovebirds who were too entranced to actually take the next metaphorical step.

They had danced for a while before a commotion broke out.

“I demand that you let me pass!” A shrill voice broke out.

Emma and Regina stopped their dancing, or rather, Emma tensed and stopped dancing, letting go of Regina as she whipped her head to look at the door. “Is everything okay Emma?”

There was a scuffle and then the guests parted ways to let a fairy decked in blue pass. Beside her was Tink, and Regina’s confusion grew.

“There you are!” exclaimed the fairy in blue. In Regina’s mind, the only fairy she could think of that always wore blue was Reul Ghorm, the head of the fairies, in service to the White Kingdom.

Emma ground her teeth. “Congratu-fucking-lations.”

“Now now, is that any way to treat your fairy godmother?”

“Emma?” Regina asked, absolutely puzzled. Why would the Blue Fairy be looking for Emma?

Emma turned to face Regina, apologetic. “I may have kept some information from you.”

“You mean from everyone!” Blue spat. She really didn’t look like the benevolent fairy everyone always painted her to be. “Behold: the Lost Princess!”

There were gasps and murmurs echoing around the room, and then it dawned on Regina. The infamous missing Princess Emma, how could she have missed it?

“I am not lost! I left! Because you all wanted to make me into a docile princess!” Emma roared. “I am a Realm Jumper.”

“No!” Blue screeched, and everyone cringed. “You are to go back to your parents at once!”

Regina stepped up. “She has to do no such thing.”

Blue whipped around to face her. “I wouldn’t really be talking if I were you. It was because of you that we found Emma.”

Now it was Emma’s turn to look puzzledly at Regina.

“I did no such thing,” Regina reaffirmed, sparing a hopefully reassuring glance towards Emma. Then she looked to Tink. “I’m assuming you were in on whatever plan this was?”

Tink had enough of a conscience to not meet Regina’s eyes.

“Plan?” Blue asked, letting out a relatively delirious laugh. “This was a masterpiece of a plot that we orchestrated.”

Emma and Regina shared a look of confusion before turning back to Blue.

“You see, this world is supposed to be clear-cut. Good and evil. Soulmates are meant to reflect that, and yet you two were paired for some reason.”

The pair could only stand there, absolutely baffled. 

“What?!” they chorused.

Blue huffed. “Oh yes. You two are soulmates.”

“But,” Regina was quick to interject. “Emma doesn’t have a lion tattoo.”

Emma frowned. “A lyon tattoo?” I have one.”

She held up her left wrist with a flower on it.

“A different lion, so to speak,” Blue added. “But a lyon nonetheless.”

This made Regina’s mind spin. “A lyon tattoo? You’re sure?”

“Yeah…” Emma said. “It’s the flower on my father’s shield.”

“But what made you get it on your wrist?”

Emma shrugged. “It felt right.”

“Yes, because Emma does still feel a bit of homesickness, don’t you?” Blue asked. “The problem was to figure out some way to get Emma back.”

“I am so confused right now,” Emma said.

“That makes two of us,” Regina affirmed.

Blue sighed. “Allow me to explain. We fairies are gifted with many powers and responsibilities. One of those is to make sure the balance of the world remains as such, and that things happen as they’re supposed to. Unfortunately, something happened.

“Queen Regina was meant to become the feared Evil Queen, terrorizing the realm, and Princess Emma was meant to slay her and become the hero of the realm. But for some reason, rather than become enemies as was prophesied, you were now meant to be lovers.

“That couldn’t be it though. I knew my mission. I had to make sure that nothing changed. So we tried everything. We tried to dissuade Emma from becoming a Realm Jumper. When that failed, we got a few kings to begin the rumours regarding the Evil Queen.”

As Regina and Emma continued hearing Blue’s monologue, their anger surged. Regina’s hands flared with two twin fireballs.

“And yet it was like we were working against the most stubborn of waves.”

Regina scoffed, putting out the fireballs. “Considering that it’s your kind that preaches about true love being unstoppable, I’m surprised that you are so adamant in going against that.”

“It’s for the greater good! You’re not supposed to get your happy ending!” Blue yelled. “You are supposed to be unlovable!”

“Well, much to your chagrin, I’m about to get my happy ending.”

“I think not.” Blue muttered an incantation and before anyone could react, she threw a ball of magic at Regina. She tried to block it, but she was too slow in erecting her shield.

As she crumbled to the floor, all that she heard was Emma’s panicked yell.

* * *

Blue let out a satisfied harrumph. She had wanted to keep her hands clean, but sometimes, if you wanted something done right, you had to do it yourself.

“Now, rise,” Blue instructed Regina.

On command, Regina sat up and shoved Emma to the side, hard. The latter tumbled to the floor with an audible ‘oof’, and Regina stood up, her eyes seeming darker, her expression more malicious.

“Now, why don’t you show everyone here exactly what an Evil Queen looks like.”

Regina looked everyone, and then back down at herself. “What is this ghastly colour?”

With a wave of her hand, Regina’s dress turned deep black with blood red hints. She also changed her makeup to a more dramatic red eyeshadow and black mascara.

“Regina,” Emma softly said, standing up and walking closer to her. “Please fight this.”

“Oh child, she can’t fight it. This spell gives me total control of Regina. I will guide her on becoming the most feared in the entire realm. And then, she can continue wreaking havoc, just as it was intended.”

“Intended by whom?” Abigail exclaimed. She had been out in the garden with Frederick whispering sweet nothings before she noticed that it was too quiet in the ballroom. She had been watching carefully, trying to gage the situation, and now stepped forward.

“The universe, foolish girl.”

Meanwhile, Emma hadn’t given up on Regina. She quickly wondered if she should dare to touch her, but settled against it. “Come on, fight this, please! If we’re truly soulmates, then that means that we’re meant for each other. Isn’t that what you wanted?”

Blue rolled her eyes. “Enough! Regina, remove your heart, will you?”

“No!” Emma screamed, watching, horrified, as Regina plunged her heart deep in her chest and pulled it out before Emma could reach forward to try and stop her. It was a deep red colour, but some dark tendrils were beginning to appear.

Emma whipped back around to face Blue and began stalking over to her. “You are a monster.”

Blue sniffed, picking at some imaginary lint on her dress skirt. “I am the one that makes sure this realm continues with the status quo. If Tink here had done her job properly, I wouldn’t have needed to do what I am doing now.”

Tink slouched. “You made me lie.”

“Yes yes, a necessity,” Blue said, dismissively. “Now, what should I make Regina do first? Attack the White Kingdom?”

Emma clenched her fists and stopped on the spot. “You shall do no such thing.”

Blue hummed. “No, you’re right, there is something I need to do first. Regina, be a dear and hand over your heart.”

Regina did as ordered, while everyone watched in silence, too afraid to move.

“Excellent, now: murder everyone in this room.”

Shocked gasps rang around the room.

“Now now, I don’t see what all the surprise is for. After all, what did you think? That I was going to let all of you get away knowing the truth? I have a reputation to uphold.”

Regina lit up a fireball, and was poised, ready to throw it.

“Wait,” Blue ordered. “There’s no fun in letting them all burn right now. Kill Emma first by removing her heart.”

As Regina began to stalk over to Emma, the latter was trying to think quickly. She moved in a circular motion closer to Blue, and waited.

When Regina plunged her hand into Emma’s chest, Emma let out a scream of pain. Maybe it was a bit dramatic, but it was enough to get Blue to jump in surprise, and that was all that Emma needed.

Keeping her left hand ready, she used her right to swipe the heart from Blue’s hand, and then snapped her fingers, taking them away.

The last thing she heard were Blue’s scream of frustration.


	6. A New Life

Emma looked around at their new setting. She couldn’t very well bring her to her home in a world supposedly without magic, not if she wanted this to work.

“Tell me, is this meant to be some kind of interpretative new art piece? Because if so, I have to say I don’t really like it.” Their audience consisted of the infamous - and erroneously named - Wicked Witch of the West, and her monkey Walsh. She was sitting on her golden throne as she stroked Walsh’s fur, the latter giving out a content sigh.

Though she was right. She was looking at Emma standing as if she was tilting backwards, arms spread out, a heart in her right hand as Regina stood frozen with her hand plunged deep into Emma’s chest.

Emma smiled tersely. “It’s kind of a long story Zelena, can you be less judging and more helpful?”

Zelena groaned as she got up from her seat. “Oh fine, if you insist.”

Regina meanwhile was blinking, confused, as she strained to ask, “What’s going on?”

“Well, for starters, you removed your own heart, and were in the process of removing mine.”

At that, Regina shot back, horrified, removing her hand from Emma’s chest. Emma let out a small wince at the sharp movement, but kept quiet.

“You need me for something, or just to be the awkward third wheel in an already awkward two wheeled disaster?” Zelena piped up.

“I need you to put this back, I’m not sure that Regina is in any position to do it,” Emma asked, holding out the heart. Regina seemed like she was still in a bit of daze.

Zelena tisked, taking the heart gingerly. “Neither should one remove their own heart. It’s highly dangerous.”

Without much preamble, Zelena returned Regina’s heart, getting the latter to gasp at the brusque method that her heart was re-inserted.

“Anything else?”

Emma nodded. “A fairy put some spell on Regina, mind undoing it?”

Zelena hummed. “I don’t suppose you know what spell it is? It would make this much easier.”

“It’s a mind control spell.”

“That is not helpful in the least,” Zelena deadpanned with a roll of her eyes. “There are dozens of those.”

“Then I suppose you’ll have to go through every one of them,” Emma insisted.

While Zelena tried to counter the spell, Emma made her way closer to Regina. The latter seemed like a shadow of her former self.

“Regina, can you hear me?”

Regina turned to face her, but she seemed numb.

“It’s like she’s aware of what’s going on, but she’s not reacting, past when she spoke earlier,” Zelena commented. Then she clapped her hands once. “I got it! Or well...I don’t suppose you know who this lady’s true love is?”

“Me, why?” Emma supplied.

Zelena blinked. “This is your true love? Looks like someone won the lottery!”

Emma rolled her eyes. “Yeah yeah, what should I do?”

“Kiss her you idiot!”

Turning back to Regina, she went to stand in front of her. She put her hands on Regina’s arms above her elbow and took a deep breath. “I hope this works, because I would really love to live the rest of my life with you.”

Closing her eyes, Emma surged forward to kiss Regina.

There was no light show or surge of anything like the bedtime stories Emma had grown up with, but she instantly felt Regina come back to life, wrapping her arms around Emma’s neck, allowing Emma to bring her hands to Regina’s waist.

“Get a room you two!” Zelena yelled.

When they parted for air, Regina rushed to apologize. “I am so sorry Emma, I never meant to hurt you.”

“That’s okay, I knew that wasn’t you,” Emma said with a soft kiss to Regina’s cheek. “Now, what do you say we kick some fairy ass?”

“Get in line I call first pickings,” Regina said, lighting a fireball.

Emma let out a laugh, before snapping her fingers and taking them away.

“You’re welcome, you ungrateful heathens!” Zelena yelled out to the empty room, save for Walsh, who chittered in response. “I swear, it’s like they want me to become the Wicked Witch.”

* * *

Emma and Regina showed back up in the ballroom ready to fight.

Only to find that the fight was already over.

Tink, along with Abigail and Frederick, managed to wrangle Blue into submission, much to the couple’s surprise.

“How…” Emma breathed.

Abigail beamed at seeing the two of them back. “You’re alright!”

She rushed to hug them tightly, before launching into the explanation.

Apparently, after they left, Frederick had used the confusion to smack Blue over the head with a pole, knocking her down. Meanwhile, Abigail begged Tink to help them, and she complied, delivering a power-dampening bracelet.

“You can imagine that we slapped that thing onto her before she could regain consciousness,” Abigail finished.

Regina smiled and nodded, before turning to Tink, not sure the green fairy could be trusted either. “Why?”

Tink sighed. “It was nothing personal. Blue threatened to tear my wings out if I tried to stray from the plan.”

Everyone knew that tearing a fairy’s wings out was a fate worse than death, so Regina could understand where she was coming from.

“I knew that Emma was your soulmate, but Blue didn’t want to risk that you’d make the connection and escape.” Tink looked so remorseful. “I told you more than I should have, and while I was forbidden from telling you what I saw, I hoped that what I had heard would provide more hints. But really, I am so sorry.”

Regina walked forward and enveloped Tink in a hug. “You were very brave, so thank you for your help.”

Tink was positively beaming at that, so much so that she was floating.

“Now, let’s get this resolved once and for all.”

* * *

It would turn out that Blue had her machinations all over the realm. People that had been acting out of character were suddenly waking from a stupor.

At Regina’s advice, Emma went to visit her parents. They welcomed her with open arms, for they too were led on by Blue about the dangers of Realm Jumpers. They were ecstatic at Emma having found her soulmate, and welcomed Regina into the family right away.

Regina’s parents were also happy for their daughter, telling Emma that she was welcome to pop by for tea at any time. And if she wanted to stay forever, she could too.

“I think we did good overall,” Emma said.

Regina nodded. “We saved the realm, and put away a very dangerous creature.”

“So what shall we do next?” Emma asked, holding out her left hand, the lyon flower tattoo prominent.

“You tell me. You know I will follow.” Regina clasped Emma’s hand and gave her a soft kiss on her lips.

“If I haven’t said it before, I love your kisses,” Emma murmured.

“I think you’ve said it a few dozen times,” Regina responded with a laugh, giving Emma another kiss. “Now, are we doing this?”

“Yep. Ready for the next adventure?” At Regina’s nod, Emma brought her hand up and snapped her fingers, taking them away.

**Author's Note:**

> And that was that!
> 
> Let me know your thoughts! And if you haven't seen, I've also got another story out, called Fix It Fic!


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